NWS now says two tornadoes touched down Friday in Ohio, the first of 2021
The National Weather Service in Wilmington, Ohio, now says two tornadoes touched down in Ohio on Friday, the first two of 2021.
The first tornado occurred about 4:12 p.m. near Fort Recovery in southwestern Mercer County and traveled 5.7 miles before ending about 4:25 p.m., the NWS said. The second tornado occurred around 8:38 p.m. and traveled nearly three miles from near Gratis, in southwest Montgomery County into northwest Butler County, in between Dayton and Cincinnati, according to the NWS official report.
No serious injuries or deaths were reported from either tornado.
Mercer County tornado
The tornado in the Fort Recovery area in Mercer County was rated on the enhanced Fujita scale as an EF2, meaning it was a strong tornado with speeds between 111 to 135 mph. This tornado had a maximum estimated wind speed of 115 mph, the NWS, and was 200 yards at its maximum path width.
Trees snapped along Park Road just east of the Indiana County line were the first evidence of a weak tornado, the NWS ground survey team reported. The tornado them moved southeast and may have briefly lifted before touching back down and leaving a visible swirl in a wheatfield between St. Joe and Wabash roads. As it moved across Wabash Road, the NWS says the tornado intensified lifting the roofs off multiple outbuildings at the Fort Recovery Lumber Yard and collapsing a cinderblock wall.
The NWS reported the tornado then continued southwest, tearing through hardwood wooded areas between Wabash and Fort Recovery-Minster roads. After crossing Fort Recovery-Minster Road, the tornado partially removed an outbuilding roof and damaged trees.
"More significant damage then became apparent" as the tornado continued southeast toward the Burrville and Hart roads area, the NWS said. Multiple homes along Burrville Road had substantial roof damage with the total removal of more than half the roof on one single-family home. Outbuildings were destroyed, attached garages were removed, tree damage was substantial and projectiles were embedded in one exterior home wall.
Several utility poles along Burrville Road were broken and debris from the damaged homes and buildings on Burrville were thrown about a half-mile away toward Wourms Road, the NWS said. The tornado also snapped and broke utility poles along Wourms Road, where "the most significant tree damage" was seen with numerous hardwood treed snapped or knocked over — damage consistent with a low-end wind speed EF2 tornado, the survey team reported.
As it continued southeast toward Fox and Weiring roads, the NWS said "the tornado seemed to rapidly weaken." The partial removal of the top of a silo and minor damage to an outbuilding were the only signs of a tornado seen and there was no damage observed southeast of that location.
Mercer County Emergency Management Agency and local fire department officials initially reported the tornadoand accompanied the NWS ground survey team Saturday as it assessed the damage.
The NWS also noted that a tornado debris signature was also observed on radar, and there have been numerous social media postings showing pictures or video of a tornado in the Fort Recovery area.
A second tornado strikes SW Ohio
The second tornado, whose path was around 100 yards in width, tore through southwest Ohio at roughly 90-95 mph, the NWS reported.
That tornado was ranked an EF1, which is considered a "weak" tornado. Twisters in that category range in speeds from 86 to 110 mph.
While both "brief and weak" the tornado still caused a significant amount of damage, uprooting several trees before continuing southeast through Montgomery County where roofing material was whipped off the roof of a home and barn before lifting off across county lines in Germantown, Ohio, according to the NWS report.
There were no injuries or deaths reported. But a "significant amount" of straight-line wind damage occurred in southwestern and southern Ohio as well as in southeast Indiana and northern Kentucky as a result of the line of severe thunderstorms that moved through Friday, the NWS said Saturday.
Outside the zone
In central Ohio, the only damage reported to the NWS occurred around 9:50 p.m. Friday about five miles northeast of Johnstown in Licking County, where several trees were knocked down on Cooper Road near Appleton Road.
To see an interactive NWS map with dots marking locations of reported storm damage in Ohio Friday night that you can click and see details, go to https://www.weather.gov/iln/20210618
The threat of scattered storms with heavy downpours in central Ohio is less likely Sunday, and then picking up again Monday before clearing out. The NWS said heavy rainfall of up to 1 to 2 inches an hour is possible with some storms. In areas that get hit by repeated storms, total rainfall of 3 to 5 inches is possible on already saturated ground.
Reporter Ceili Doyle contributed to this story